A fine Parian bust of Mercury on a fluted column

A fine Parian bust of Mercury on a fluted column, probably by Robinson and Leadbeater.  (This figure is unmarked, but the column is similar in design to those produced by Robinson and Leadbeater.)

Mercury, the Roman God of thieves and merchants, was equivalent to the Greek God Hermes, the messenger of the Gods. This bust, with its traditional winged helmet, is a copy of the head of the life size marble figure of Mercury (1819 – 1822) sculpted by Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770 -1844), now in the Thorvaldsen Museum in Copenhagen. The whole figure was reproduced in Parian by Minton ( The Parian Phenomenon page 65, fig 82) from a bronze copy of the marble owned by the Duke of Sutherland. Other manufactures also produced versions in Parian.

Height including column:  34½cm (13½ “)

Condition: Very good. There is a firing line behind/below the right ear and a tiny nick at the front edge of the bust base.